Washington -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Whatever you think of his politics , House Speaker John Boehner has a great sense of humor . So perhaps he wo n't mind the question framed this way : What happened , in the course of just one week , to make Speaker Boehner the Miss Emily Litella of immigration reform ?

-LRB- If I have lost you already , take a moment and search the Web to understand the reference -- you wo n't regret it . -RRB-

`` Never mind , '' was the trademark closing line of a character the late Gilda Radner made famous as a cast member on `` Saturday Night Live . '' And `` never mind , '' is what Speaker Boehner might just as well have said Thursday when he all but declared the immigration reform legislative debate dead for 2014 .

`` Listen , there 's widespread doubt about whether this administration can be trusted to enforce our laws , '' Boehner told reporters , suggesting White House executive actions to change provisions of the health care law had many conservatives worried the administration would n't feel bound by any immigration legislation passed by Congress .

Citing that trust deficit , the Speaker added : `` It 's going to be difficult to move any immigration legislation until that changes . ''

There is without a doubt deep mistrust of the Obama White House in the Republican congressional ranks .

But is that mistrust any greater than just a week ago ? Of course not , and it was just a week ago that the same Speaker Boehner said this of the same immigration debate :

`` This problem has been around for at least the last 15 years , it 's been turned into a political football . I think it 's unfair , so I think it 's time to deal with it . ''

To be fair , the Speaker a week ago was candid about the disagreements and skepticism within the Republican ranks -- and among Republican base voters critical to 2014 midterm success .

`` That 's why , '' he said a week ago , `` doing immigration reform in a common sense , step by step manner helps our members understand the bite size pieces and helps our constituents build more confidence that what we 're doing makes sense . ''

But to that point , again just a week ago , the word from House GOP leadership aides was that Boehner wanted to try to see if the House could act this year .

And President Obama tried to create some space for compromise , angering some liberals by telling CNN 's Jake Tapper he would not prejudge the final product -- opening the door to accepting a measure that provided legal status , but not a fast track , to citizenship for the estimated 11Â 1/2 million undocumented immigrants in the United States .

Now , it appears testing that spirit of compromise will have to wait until 2015 or beyond .

What changed in a week ?

Nothing , say key Boehner lieutenants . They insist people , primarily immigration activists and the media , read too much into what the Speaker said a week ago .

`` Nothing ` happened ' per se , '' a top Boehner aide said in an e-mail exchange . `` We just got started and getting started requires taking a sober view at the challenges that we face . All he did today was outline the challenges we need to overcome . ''

Those challenges -- the trust deficit as outlined by the Speaker -- are most unlikely to be overcome in a heated election year .

Veteran GOP strategist Alex Castellanos , who for years has been urging the GOP to act on immigration , said the politics behind Boehner 's shift were easy to understand .

`` Nothing the House would do would ever become law , '' Castellanos said -- meaning that even if the House passed something , it was unlikely that differences with the Senate could be worked out this year .

So a House debate now , Castellanos said , `` would divide Republicans and become a political weapon Democrats could use against Republicans in 2014 . ''

There is no doubt a vocal slice of the House GOP conference was against acting on immigration this year -- arguing their biggest priority is turning out conservative base voters , many of whom view even legal status as amnesty .

And on the Senate side , GOP leader Mitch McConnell had already served notice he had little appetite for revisiting the issue in that chamber before the election .

Not only does McConnell face a tea party primary challenge but , as we illustrated last Sunday on `` Inside Politics , '' most GOP strategists see action on immigration this year -- whatever the long-term good it might do Republicans -- as potentially harmful to GOP prospects this year .

The raw politics behind that view : In the 11 states where Senate seats now held by Democrats that are top GOP 2014 targets , conservative turnout is critical and the Latino population tiny to small . -LRB- West Virginia is lowest with just a 1 % Latino population ; North Carolina is the highest at 9 % . -RRB-

`` McConnell saying it was n't going to get done -- burst the balloon , '' said GOP strategist Ana Navarro , another voice who consistently stresses the urgency of acting on the immigration issue , yet sees the short-term political rationale of waiting .

So does Castellanos , again despite his longer-term worries about the GOP and the Latino vote .

`` Right now , the spotlight is center stage on the Democrats , the President and Obamacare , '' said Castellanos . `` And the GOP wants to do nothing to distract from that , certainly not start a food fight on immigration . ''

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A week ago , House Speaker Boehner said he wanted to try to act on immigration

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On Thursday , Boehner said it would n't happen this year

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Trust gap between Republicans and White House wo n't close in election year

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Immigration debate between House Republicans would give Democrats a weapon